Hand brake for railway cars



w. s. B r-:Mls Y HAND'BRAKE FOR RAILWAY GARSV Filed Feb. 9, l1925sheets-sheet 2' v Z @j .55 F71 v i Patented Sept. 14, 19126.

WALTER. s. Bums, or cnIcAGo, ILLINoIs.

HAND BRAKE FOB RAILWAY CARS.

Application led Februaryl, 1925. Serial No. 7,774. i'

This invention relates to hand brakes for freight, trolley and otherrailway cars, and

has reference more particularly to hand' brakes of the type shown in myformer Patent No. 1,522,608 dated January 13,- 1925,-

being in the general nature of an improvement upon thehand brakedisclosed in the aforesaid Letters Patent.

In my former patent .aforesaid the winding mechanism of the brakechainis equipped with an automatic device for reducing the slack in thebrake chain when they latter is unwound from the brake drum or shaft,thereby correspondingly reducing the subsgguent winding movementnecessary to take the slack out of the brake chain when applying thebrakes. This mechanism comprises essentially a fixed stop on the shaftbracket and a co-operating movable stop member 'formed on a cleviswhich'connects f the brake 'chain to the free end of the usual radialarm on the brake'shaft.

One object of my present invention is to provide an automatic meanswhereby,

should the clevis carrying the movable stop member become temporarilyinoperative through freezing, clogging, or any other cause, and allowthe movable'stop member to get behind the fixed stop member, the

proper relation of said stop members may be automatically restored uponthe 'subsequent rewinding of the brake chain. An-

other object of the invention is to provide an improved construction ofgeared hand brake of the internal gear type. Another object is4 toprovide an improved housing and mounting for the hand wheel shaft andpinion which drives the internal gear on the chain winding shaft ordrum. Other objects 40 are, to provide an improved housing for the gearsthat will exclude dust and dirt and protect them from the weather, toprovide an improved bearing for the large internal gear andan improvedconnection of the latter to the chain winding shaft that will facilitateassembling of the parts and avoid the necessity of accurate machining,thereby cheapening the cost of production. Other objects and attendantadvantages of the invention will 'be apparent to persons skilled in theart as the same becomes better under-L stood by reference to thefollowing detailed description, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings in which I have 1llustrated practical andpreferred embodiviewed from the bottom of ,inverted ments of the severalimproved features constitutlng my invention, and in which Fig.- 1 is atop plan view of a hand brake of the internally geared type having myimprovements applied thereto, and showing the radial arm at the limit ofits back turning movement; -v

Flg. 2 is a side elevation Jof the same,

Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 1s a view similar to Fig. 1, but showing the radial a-rm advancedto a posi- 'tion' in which the chain is tangent to .the

shaft and is` beginning to be wound on the latter;

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on the line 4--4 of Fllg. '3 with the arm,chain, and fixed and Inova le stop members appearing in side elevatlonin the foreground;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section through the combination housing andmounting taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 6 is a side elevation ofthe clevis f carrying the movable stopmember.

Referring tothe drawings, A designates as an entirety the top member andB the bottom member of a combined bracket and housing for the chainwinding and unwind- -ing mechanism. These members are preferably ormeda's malleable castings that are riveted together around theirperipheries so as to form in eiect a single rigid housing and su unwining mechanism.

The upper casting A comprises a shallow cup-shaped structure 10, theperipheral rim of which is formed at intervals with outwardly directedlugs 11 suitably apertured for riveting to mating lugs on the lowermember. Flush with the top wall of the inverted cup-shaped member are apair of wings 12 'apertured at 13 for bolting to the under side of thecar body C (Fig. 4). On and substantially centrally of the plate 10 isan upstanding plate 14 suitably apertured for bolting to the front sillof the car body. From the front of the plate 14 extends a taperedvertical stiifening rib 15 to the front lug or flan e 11. v

The lower member of the combined bracket and housing comprises, asherein port for the complete winding and shown, a shallow uprightcup-shaped member 16, the peripheral rim of which is formedv withoutwardly directed lugs 17 underlying and mating withuthe lu s 11 of theupper member and united to t' e latter by rivets I 1,8. In the center ofthe plate 16 is a round opening forming a bearing 19 forthe hub of alarge internal gear hereinafter described. Continuous with and dependingfrom the periphery of the member 16 is a yoke 20, the two ribbed arms'of which at their lower ends merge into a central plate 21 that iscentrally socketed to form a step bearing 22 (Fig. 4). Midway betweenthe opposed arms of the yoke is a half yoke or brace 23 (Fig. 4)connecting the periphery of the member 16 with the central plate 21.

Mounted in the step bearing 22 is the lower end of a vertical chainwinding shaft or drum 24. l The upper portion of this shaft 24 issquared or otherwise formed of `polygonal cross-section, as shown at24'; and on this polygonal vportlon of the shaft" is mounted a radiallyextending chain winding arm 25, the outline form of whlch 1s clearly.shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1.-

. The hub of the arm 25 is beveled, as shown at 25' to facilitate thelaying of the chain as it is wound on the shaft 24.

From Fig. 4 it will readily be seen that the relatively invertedcup-shaped members 10 and 16 together form a circular chamber 26 inwhich is mounted and housed a large cup-shaped internal gear Wheel 27.This gear is formed on its lower side Wlth a central bearing hub 28 thatfits in the bearing 19 and is itself formed with a polygonal boretelescoping and drivingly connected with the squared portion 24 of thewinding shaft 24; the hub 28 preferably extending the full length of thesquared portion 24 above the hub of the arm 25, so as to form arelatively long and strong slip-joint coupling with the latter. Inassembling these parts, before the upper and lower halves 10 and -16 ofthe housing are riveted together the shaft 24 with the arm 25 thereon isentered from beneath through the bearing opening 19 and its lower end isthen dropped into the-step bearing. 22, and the internal gear 27 is thenplaced in the member 16, its hub 28 being telescoped overthesquaredupper end 24- of the shaft and at the same time centered and mounted inthe bearing 19.

Describing next the hand Wheel staff and riving pinion for the internalgear 27. these parts and the manner in which they are mounted in theupper member A of the combined bracket and housing are shown in Figs. 1and 3, and in vertical section in Fig. 5. Integral with the plate 10 isa small approximately circular countersunk plat-v form or shelf 30, onwhich is supported a pinion 31 that meshes with and drives the internalgear 27. The platform 30 is suspended from the plate 10 by a curved rimor wall 32; and both the platform and its supporting rim are cut away onone side and supports a combined pinion housing cover and hand Wheelstaff bearing 34 that rests upon the flange 33 and is formed with athick depending rim 34 that tightly fits within the flange 33 andrigidiies and reinforces the bearing of the hand Wheel staff in themember 34. Through a central bearing opening in the member 34 extendsthe hand Wheel sta-ff 35, having la squared lower end 36 fitting acorrespondingly shaped bore in the pinion 31. The staff 35 is locked inplace by a cotter pin 37 extending therethrough above the pinion 31 andbelow the cover 34; while said cover 34 is securely held down on themember 10 by means of a pair of oppositelv disposed ears 38 formedthereon lving between forked upstanding lugs 39 ori the plate 10 andfastened to said lugs by cotter pins 40. To reduce friction, the lowerside of the pinion 31 is preferably equipped with a narrow low boss 41,shown in Fig. 5, that has a Step bearing on the plat-l form or shelf 30.A

The above described construction affords a very easy assembling anddisassembling of the drivin mechanism of the large internal gear 27. ymerely removing the cotters 40, the staff 35 and cover 34 can be raisedeither with or without the pinion 31;,and by then vwithdrawing thecotter pin 37 the bearing member 34 can be withdrawn and replaced by anew one when unduly worn or otherwise requiring renewal. It should alsobe noted that the described construction entirely relieves thecup-shaped internal gear 27 of the weight of the driving staff andpinion, which is eccentric to the bearing of the internal gear, so thatan uneven wear on the bearing 19, due to the eccentrically appliedweight of the said parts, is entirely avoided.

The outer or free end of the radial arm 25l extends between the parallelarms of a forked clevis 42, best shown in Figs. 4 and 6, and ispivotally connected with the latter by a pin 43. On one side of thepivot 43 the clevis 42 is connected by a pin or rivet 44 Withtheforemost link of the usual brake chain 45. On the otherside of the pivot43 the clevis is equipped with an upstanding stop member 46. On theunder side of the housing-plate 16 is a fixed stop member 47, preferablytaking the form of an integral lug, that cooperates with the' collidingas shown 'f movable ment and thereby reducing the slack in the chain,all as fully described in my aforesaid Letters Patent No. 1,522,608.While under all normal operating conditions the stop mechanism of theaforesaid patent operates satisfactorily, yet occasionally underabnormal conditions and accidental circumstances,the clevis may fail toswing ,the

stop member into a position to collide with the fixed stop member duringthe last half revolution of the unwinding movement of the shaft 24, sothat the stop member 46 vmay pass beyond the fixed stop member 47. Toprovide for its automatic return, so that it will not block thesubsequent winding movement of the brake shaft 24, I have providedautomatic means for insuring its return to the proper side of the fixedstop lug upon the rewinding of the chain; this means, in the instanceshown, taking the form of an arcuate tail-like extension 47 of the lug47 that is slidably engaged b the nose of the stop member 46, 1n casethe latter passes the lug 47, and both prevents the member 46 fromobstructing the subsequent rewinding movement through collision with theouter side of the lug 47 and serves to guide the member 46 again pastand into proper co-operative relation to the lug 47. This featurevtherefore is in the general nature of a Iguard or safety device toprevent the failure ofthe stop mechanism to' properly function underabnormal and unusual circumstances.

By reference to Figs. 2 and 4 it will be observed that the rear portionof the central shaft bearing plate 21 1s beveled downwardly andoutwardly, as shown at 21 below the chain 45; this feature constitutinga sort of safety slope or guide for the chain to facilitate its smoothbrake shaft 24.

One practical advantage of the construction hereinabove described liesin the facility and ease with which the parts may be assembled. Anotheradvantage resides in the economy of construction due to avoiding thenecessity of accurate machining of the parts. Still another importantadvantage resides in the described guard or safety device which preventsthe possibility of the stop mechanism failing to function properly underabnormal on accidental conditions; and a further important advantageresides in the complete housing and protecting of the gears, which makesit practicable to pack the latter with grease or oil, if desired, andprotects them from dirt and rust. Manyother advanta es will be apparentto persons familiar wlththe art, without specific mention herein.

While I have herein shown -a'nddescrlbed one practical embodiment of theseveral features of improvement making up the present -..invent1on, it1s -xnanifest' 'that the spepassage onto andaround the ing and vformedcific details herein shown and described for purposes of illustrationmodified without departing from lthe principles involved or sacrificingany of the recited advantages. Hence, I reserve all such variations andmodifications as fall/within the spirit and purview of `the appendedclaims. A

I claim-` 1. In a hand brake for railway cars, the combination of 'abrake-shaft bracket including a gear housing formed with a bear- "ing inits bottom wall, `.a gear in said housing formed on its lower side witha hub journaled in said bearing, said hub having a polygonal bore, abrake shaft having a polygonal upper portion fitting into the bore ofsaid hub, a hand-wheel stad extending into said housing and terminatingin a polygonal end portion located above the bottom wall of saidhousing, and a drive pinion meshing with said gear and having apolygonal bore engaged by the polygonal end of said staff. l

2. In a hand brake for railway cars, the combination of a brake-shaftbracket including a gear housin formed with a bearing in its bottom walan internal gear enclosed by said housing and formed with a hubjournaled in said bearing, `a brake-shaft coupled to said hub, ahand-wheel stati' having its lower end extended into said housing aboveand out of contact with the web of said internal gear, and a drivepinion on the lower end of said stad meshing with said internal gear.

3. In a hand brake for railway cars, the combination of a' brake-shaftbracket including a gear housing formed with a bearing in its bottomwall, and a step bearing beneath said housing, a gear within saidhousing formed on its lower side with a hub journaled in said gearhousing bearing, said hub having a polygonal bore, a brake-shaft at itslower end mounted in said step bearwith a polygonal upper end portionfitting into the bore of said hub, a hand-wheel staff, and a pinion onsaid staff meshing with said gear.

4. In a hand brake for railway cars, the

may be considerably y combination of a brake-shaft bracket including a.gear housing formed with a bearing in its bottom wall, and astepbearing beneath said housing, a gear withln said housing formed onits lower side with a hub journaled in said gear housing bearing, saidhub having a polygonal bore, a brakeshaft at its lower end mounted inend portion fitting int'othe bore of said hub.

said step bearing and formed with a polygonal upper' a hand-wheel stall'extending into and terminating above the bottom -wall of said housing,and a pinion fast on the lower end of said stati meshinfg with saidgear.

5.. In a hand brake or railway cars, the

leoA

' ing with said internal' connected at its combination of a brake-shaftbracket including a gear housing provided with a pinion support-ingmember, an internal gear journaled in and enclosed by said housing, abrake-shaft driven by said internal gear, a hand-wheel staff at itslower end extending into said housing, and a drive pinion on the lowerend of said staff resting upon said pinion supporting member and meshingear.

6. In a hand bra e for railway cars, the combination of a brake-shaftbracket including a gear housing, an internal gear journaled in saidhousing, a brake-shaft driven by said internal gear. a platform susendedfrom the top wall of said gear hous-y ing within and eccentrically ofsaid internal gear, a drive pinion supported on said platform andmeshing with said internal gear` and a hand-wheel staff drivinglyconnected at its lower end to said pinion.

7. In a hand brake for railway cars, the combination of a brake-shaftbracket including a gear housing, an internal gear journaled in saidhousing, a brakeshaft driven by said internal gear, a pinion housingsuspended from the top wall of said gear housing within andeccentrically of said internal gear and open on the side thereofadjacent to the teeth of said internal gear, a drive pinion vwithin andsupported on' the bottom 'wc l1 of said pinion housing and in mesh withsaid internal gear, a cover for said pinion housing formed with abearing. means for locking said cover in place, and and a hand-wheelstaff journaled in the bearing of said cover and drivingly connected atits lower end to said pinion.

8. In a hand bra-ke for railway cars, the combination of a brake-.shaftbracket including a gear housing, an internal gear journaled in saidhousing, a brake shaft driven by said internal gear, a pinion housingsuspended from the top wall of saidgear housing within and eccentricallyof sai internal gear and open on the side thereof adjacent to the teethof said'internal gear, a drive pinion formed with a central bearl bosson its lower side stepped on the bottom wall of said pinion housing, acover for said pinion housing formed with a de-k pending rim fittingwithin said pinion housing, a central bearing, and radial locking lugs,means for locking said lugs to sald ear housing. a hand-wheel staffJournaled 1n the bearing of said cover and drivingly lower end to saidpinlon, and means locking the lower end of sa1d staff in said pinionhousing. Q

9. In a geared hand brake for railway cars, the combination of upper andlower castings formed respectivelyI wlth mating inverted and uprightshallo'w7 cup-shaped members unitedly .forming a circular gear -housing,means for uniting said cup-shaped members, an internal gear journaled insaid housing, a brake shaft driven by said internal gear, a pinionsupported within said housing in mesh with said internal gear, and ahand-wheel stad drivingly engaged with said pinion.

10. In a geared hand brake for railway cars, the combination of upperand lower castings formed respectively with mating inverted and uprightshallow cup-shaped members unitedly forming a circular gear housing andwith mating radial flanges on said cup-shaped members, means for unitingsaid flanges, attachment lugs on said upper casting for fastening thesame to the car body, a step bearing on said lower casting underlyingsaid gear housing, an internal gear journaled in said housing, abrake-shaft at its lower end mounted in said step bearing and at itsupper end connected to said internal gear, a pinion supported withinsaid housing in mesh with said internal gear, and

a handwheel staff drivingly engaged with said pinion.

11. In a hand brake mechanism for railway cars, the combination of abrake-shaft bracket, a brake-shaft mounted in said bracket, a radial armon said shaft, a brakeshaft chain connected to said arm, a fixed stopmember on said bracket, a co-operating stop member carried by said armadapted, under the drag of said chain, to be swung to an interferingposition with said fixed stop member during the final part of thebrakereleasing movement of said mechanism, and means serving to directsaid co-operating lilo stop member past said fixed stop member duringthe initial part of the brake-applying movement of said mechanism.

12. In a hand brake mechanism for railway cars, the bracket, abrake-shaft mounted in said bracket, a radial arm on said shaft, abrakeshaft chain connected to the free end of said arm, a fixed stopmember on said bracket, a co-operating stop member carried by said arm,said last-named stop member being shifted relatively to said arm by thepull of said chain when the latter is being wound on the brake-shaft toa non-interfering position relatively to said fixed stop member, and bythe drag of said chain during the last part of the unwinding movement toan interfering position with said fixed stop member, and a fixed guideon' said bracket operating through contact with said co-operating stopmember to direct the latter past said iixed stop member during theinitial partof the brake-applying movement of said mechamsm.

13. In a hand brake mechanism for railway cars, the combination of abrake-shaft bracket, a brake-shaft mounted in said bracket, a radial armon said shaft, a fixed stop member on said bracket located on onecombination of a brake-shaft.

llll

side of the plane of travel of said arm, a clevis swiveled intermediateits ends on said arm and formed with a co-operating stop member on oneend thereof, a brake chain connected to the other end of said clevis;said clevis being swung relatively to said arm by the pull of the chainas the latter is wound on the brake-shaft to a position wherein the stopmember carried thereby clears said fixed stop member, and normallyreturned by the drag of said chain during the last part of thebrake-releasing movement to a position wherein the stop member carriedthereby strikes and is arrested by said fixed stop member, and a guideformed as a rearward extension of said fixed stop member operatingthrough Contact with said co-operating stop member to direct the latterpast said ixed sto member during the 'initial part of the bra e-applyingmovement of said mechanism.

14. In a hand brake mechanism for railway cars, the combination of abrake-shaft bracket, a brake-shaft mounted in said bracket, a radial armon said shaft, a fixed stop member on said bracket located above theplane of travel of said arm, a. bifurcated clevis straddling andswiveled on the free end of said arm and formed with an upstanding stopmember on one end thereof, and a brake chain connected to the other endof said clevis; said clevis being swung relatively to said arm by thepull of the chain as the latter is wound on the brakeshaft to a positionwherein the stop member l carried thereby clears said' iixed stopmember, and returned by the drag of said chain during the last part ofthe brake-releasing movement to a position wherein the stop membercarried thereby collides with said fixed stop member and arrests furtherback drag of said chain.

15. In a geared hand brake mechanism for railway cars, the combinationwith a brake-shaft, and a brake chain, of a bracket including a gearhousing, a yoke depending from said gear housing, and a plate carried bysaid yoke, said plate formed with a bearing for the lower end of's'aidbrake-shaft and with a beveled peripheral ortion adapted to guide andsupport sai vbrake chain when being wound on said brake-shaft.

WALTER S. BEMIS.

